Chiwenga joined the head of the Zimbabwe Prisons Service, Paradzai Zimondi, in declaring that they would not recognise former Finance Minister Simba Makoni and opposition MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai if they won the 29 March elections.

Echoing similar threats he made with former commander Vitalis Zvinavashe in the run-up to the 2002 presidential elections, Chiwenga claimed Makoni and Tsvangirai were “sellouts”, without elaborating.

“Elections are coming and the army will not support or salute sell-outs and agents of the West before, during and after the presidential elections,” Chiwenga told The Standard in a telephone interview last week.

“We will not support anyone other than President Mugabe who has sacrificed a lot for the country.”

Pressed to comment on the role of the army in a democracy, Chiwenga responded angrily:

“Are you mad? What is wrong with the army supporting the President against the election of sellouts?”

A woman then took over the conversation on the phone and said: “We can come and take you and deal with you.” Then she hung up.

In remarks described by critics as being tantamount to scare-mongering ahead of 29 March, Zimondi told a pass-out parade of prison officers if Mugabe lost he would resign from his job to “defend” the farm he was allocated during the land reform programme.

A number of retired officers in the defence forces hold key positions in the government and in parastatals, most of whose performance continues to deteriorate under their stewardship.

Meanwhile, army sources have told The Standard that soldiers were recently instructed to take paid leave so they could go to their rural homes to help in the Zanu PF election campaign.

Critics of Zanu PF’s campaign strategy have attacked what they have called the “decisive role” of soldiers in ensuring that Mugabe wins, particularly in the setting up of bases in the rural constituencies.

It has been alleged that the soldiers have led party militia in intimidating the rural electorate to vote for Zanu PF.

“Those who were deployed were reminded that the hefty salary increments they received last month were part of the deal to campaign for Zanu PF,” said a soldier based at Brady Barracks in Bulawayo.

Last month the government sparked fury among civil servants when it awarded soldiers hefty pay increases, raising the average soldier’s pay to $1.3 billion from $300 million.

The deployment of soldiers in the rural areas comes amid reports the government has pulled out all the stops to improve the diet in the barracks, once reportedly hit by acute food shortages.

A monotonous diet of beans and cabbage was said to be boring the soldiers out of their enthusiasm for work.

But The Standard has established that the regular fare now features such sumptuous dishes as rice and chicken.

Army spokesperson, Colonel Samuel Tsatsi referred questions to Chiwenga when contacted for comment.

From allAfrica.com

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The German quit the post last month in the wake of a hugely disappointing Nations Cup campaign after their quarter-final exit.

Blatter suggests that Vogts’ inability to stay in the west African country during his reign could have been responsible for Nigeria’s worst Nations Cup display for 25 years.

“My old friend Berti Vogts was in charge of Nigeria and he didn’t even live in the country - that surely can’t be the correct way proceed?,” Blatter asked.

“Vogts was not living in Nigeria because he said his players weren’t there. But to feel a team you must feel the country.”

Only four coaches out of the 16 teams at the recent African Cup of Nations were from the countries they were leading.

But Blatter believes national team coaches should come from the same country as the players and wants foreign coaches to be banned from national teams.

“In Africa recently, many of the countries competing in the Cup of Nations had foreign coaches but all have now gone,” Blatter said.

“Of course, national associations are free to choose who they believe is the right man but I do think that the cause of international football would be made stronger with indigenous coaches.

“I cannot believe that it is possible to properly bring young players into international football and motivate them and bring improvement through a translator.

“I will bring it to the Technical Committee on Monday. If we had such a rule maybe it would impact on the freedom of the associations. But we can take up this matter.”

From news.bbc.co.uk

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WFP says 37 trucks and 23 drivers are still missing and other drivers are unwilling to risk going to Darfur.

Some two million people rely on food aid as a result of the conflict.

The WFP also warns it could halt its Humanitarian Air Service which transports aid workers around the vast country at the end of this month because of a lack of funding.

“This is an unprecedented situation,” said WFP representative in Sudan Kenro Oshidari.

“Our humanitarian air operation for aid workers could be forced to stop flying because we have no money, at a time when our helicopters and aircraft are needed more than ever because of high insecurity on the roads.”

Inaccessible

WFP does not say who is behind the attacks in Darfur - there are numerous rebel groups and pro-government militia in the region.

Some 8,000 people a month use WFP flights in Darfur - 3,000 in helicopters to reach parts of the country which are otherwise inaccessible, the UN agency says.

Aid agency Oxfam has warned that its operation in Darfur would be at “serious risk” if the WFP flights stopped or were reduced.

WFP also operates flights around South Sudan, which is slowly recovering from its own long conflict and where infrastructure is even worse than in Darfur.

Here too, a massive aid operation to help millions of people affected by the war would be badly affected if flights were stopped.

The UN’s special rapporteur for Sudan Sima Samar accuses says civilians were used as human shields in recent clashes in West Darfur.

Fighting has increased recently there, leading to a new stream of refugees.

The joint UN-African Union peacekeeping force is making little progress - it still has just 9,000 troops out of the 26,000 planned.

From news.bbc.co.uk

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They are targeting the Sabaot Land Defence Forces (SLDF) which was blamed for the killing of 12 people last week.

The militia has also been accused of links to recent political violence.

Kenyan MPs are expected to meet on Tuesday to start discussing the power-sharing deal designed to end the violence following December’s disputed election.

Multiple disputes

Thousands of people have fled their homes fearing being caught up in the fighting.

The operation began under cover of darkness as hundreds of Kenyan troops were driven in trucks to prepare for an offensive against the militia.

Reporters have been been told not to go into the area.

The SLDF has been carrying out an increasing number of attacks on villages, killing people, stealing cattle and destroying homes.

They claim to be fighting for land which they say belongs to the Sabaot clan of the Kalenjin community.

Correspondents say the instability in Mount Elgon is not directly related to the violence that erupted in Kenya after December’s disputed presidential election.

But long-standing land disputes between different ethnic groups have overlapped with political divisions in some areas.
From news.bbc.co.uk 

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After the final whistle we were entertained by the sight of goalkeeper Essam al-Hadari and Mohammed Zidan straddling the crossbar waving the Egyptian red, white and black flag.

The Ghanaian drummers came onto the pitch ahead of the medal ceremony and several Egyptian players danced in front of the drums, wearing bright yellow furry hats with Ghana’s flag protruding from them.

An Egyptian fan wearing a fez and strumming his lute joined in the pitch side party as the dejected Cameroonians looked on.

Some Egyptian players attempted to copy the celebratory dance which Ghana’s Michael Essien and friends had copyrighted earlier in the tournament - a hard one to put into words but with both hands jutting forward, it looks a little like a confident emu on the march.

Earlier in the day, I had watched some of Ghana’s finest young home grown talent from Nema - one of Accra’s poorest slum areas.

On dusty, stony pitches at Kawo Kudi (meaning bring money - it used to be a notorious hang out for thieves), there was little excitement about the final after the Black Stars’ defeat to Cameroon on Thursday.

“We are all looking forward to Egypt winning the cup because they play beautiful football - fantastic team and a local coach,” one 16-year-old told me, before asking if I could help him find a place in a football academy.

Another in a Real Madrid shirt added: “Ghana will not support Cameroon because they beat us.”

There were some worrying minutes for the organisers during the first half of the final as the stadium was barely half full for much of the first half.

Were Ghanaians sulking? By half time the touts outside were selling two tickets for the price of one - $2 to watch the Nations Cup final was surely a bargain.

The stadium almost filled up… eventually.

Ghana now has four beautiful new stadiums, which may rarely be filled as the local leagues take them over.

The young talent is certainly here in Ghana and I have been told more than once that the Black Stars would be the continental champions if only the best players were picked.

Success

The local league is hit hard by the phenomenon of the so-called “leg drain” and Ghana’s Black Stars are so scattered they would provide a headache for even the most experienced travel agent.

From this tournament they fly to their clubs in Russia, Spain, England, Holland, Belgium, Greece, Scotland and Norway while just three, for now, stay in Ghana.

In stark contrast, 18 of the 23-man Egyptian squad are returning to play their league football at home.

This Africa Nations Cup has been a success - more goals than ever before at an average of three a game, with plenty of memorable long-range missiles.

And plenty of noise.

In the group stages I watched a game between the Squirrels and the Elephants - not an uneven Walt Disney encounter, but a fierce contest between the teams from tiny Benin and Ivory Coast.

The long, loud plastic horns were out in full force.

Directly in front of my seat was a man whose mouth alternated between cans of beer and a horn for the entire 90 minutes.

As the beer went down, so did his energy levels and by the time Ivory Coast had scored their fourth, the attempts at a musical celebration sounded more like an elephant in distress.

Corporate tickets

The organisation of the tournament has been given a general thumbs-up, although on day one alarm bells rang as the new stadium was unveiled for Ghana’s game against Guinea.

It seemed the man with the lawnmower had gone on holiday as the players struggled in the long grass, hoping there were no hidden snakes lurking off-side.

As is the trend in football across the continent, corporate ticket allocations took up a sizeable portion of the seats - in some cases 20% of match tickets went to companies and dignitaries.

For the ticketless there were the Fan Zones - set up with giant screens where the atmosphere often matched the inside of the stadium and when Ghana won and the DJ took over, the party was complete.

Although Ghana’s team was a striker or two short, it was sad their party ended.

At 1855 on Thursday, Ghana went into mourning and we can only imagine the scenes we would have witnessed if the Black Stars had gone all the way.

For the three or four Ghanaians who do not like football, you can come out of your homes now - you are safe… for a while.

You have 850 days until the World Cup but just 109 days until the qualifying games start.

From news.bbc.co.uk

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But Justice Minister Martha Karua said this had never been discussed.

She said that Mr Annan, the former UN chief, had undermined the government’s position at the negotiations.

Some 1,000 people are thought to have died in the violence that followed the disputed polls results.

More than 600,000 people have been forced to flee their homes amid clashes between rival ethnic groups, seen as pro-government or pro-opposition.

‘Distress’

When talks between government and opposition teams were moved away from the capital, Nairobi, on Tuesday to a secret location to avoid the glare of publicity, Mr Annan asked both sides not to discuss the contents of the talks with anyone else, calling for a complete news blackout.

His comments about a possible grand coalition were made during a special closed-door session with Kenyan MPs.

But details of his briefing have angered President Mwai Kibaki’s negotiating team.

Ms Karua said his statement about a transitional government had caused distress and great embarrassment to them as it had misrepresented their position.

“We feel these inaccuracies have greatly undermined our position as members of the dialogue team and we demand the issue be revisited as the first item when we meet next,” she said.

A power-sharing deal had been thought to be imminent, but correspondents say this development implies the government is against fresh elections.

In a statement on Wednesday, mediators sought to downplay the rift, saying the grand coalition was Mr Annan’s perspective on the discussions.

“[It] does not imply a formal agreement between the two parties,” the statement says.

Both the opposition Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and President Mwai Kibaki’s Party of National Unity (PNU) have tabled proposals for a power-sharing agreement at the talks.

Mr Annan had hinted the deal would include comprehensive constitutional, judicial and electoral reforms.

He told parliament both President Kibaki and Mr Odinga are committed to the talks aimed at reconciling the nation and urged the MPs to equally support the process.

“Your active involvement, across party lines, is necessary. Without this, the government may be paralysed. We cannot afford to fail,” he said.

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Nigeria’s Super Eagles have dropped from first place in Africa to sixth, and slide 26 places in the world to 45.

Ghana’s world rank of 14 is the highest place ever reached by the Black Stars.

Although Egypt beat Cameroon twice at the Nations Cup, the Indomitable Lions are rated second on the continent.

Egypt move up six places in the world rankings but are unmoved in Africa.

A Fifa representative told BBC Sport that the rankings are not a reflection of a team’s present performance, but a reflection of performance over the past four years, and are derived using a weighting system.

Fifa rankings for Africa at 13 February. World rankings shown in brackets.

1. Ghana (14)

2. Cameroon (17)

3. Ivory Coast (24)

4. Egypt (29)

5. Senegal (43)

6. Nigeria (46)

7. Mali (46)

8. Guinea (47)

9. Morocco (48)

10. Tunisia (53)

11. Angola (64)

12. Zambia (65)

13. South Africa (70)

14. Togo (74)

15. DR Congo (75)

16. Algeria (77)

17. Equatorial Guinea (78)

18. Mozambique (82)

19. Libya (85)

20. Ethiopia (86)

21. Congo (87)

22. Uganda (93)

23. Zimbabwe (96)

24. Tanzania (101)

25. Gambia (103)

26. Gabon (105)

27. Botswana (106)

28. Sudan (107)

29. Cape Verde Islands (108)

30. Burkina Faso (109)

31. Benin (112)

32. Mauritania (113)

33. Rwanda (114)

34. Kenya (117)

35. Namibia (119)

36. Burundi (122)

37. Eritrea (131)

38. Malawi (136)

39. Chad (143)

40. Liberia (145)

41. Swaziland (149)

42. Madagascar (150)

43. Niger (152)

44. Lesotho (156)

45. Sierra Leone (159)

46. Seychelles (163)

47. Mauritius (166)

48. Guinea-Bissau (174)

49. Djibouti (176)

50. Comoros (193)

51. Central African Republic (196)

52. Somalia (197)

From news.bbc.co.uk

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“[It is] a polarised nation in deep stress and one characterised by disease and extreme poverty,” he said.

If elected on 29 March as an independent candidate, he said he would start a process of reconciliation.

He said he was not against President Robert Mugabe, but urged ruling party members wanting “renewal” to join him.

Mr Mugabe is seeking a sixth term in office and told state media earlier this week he is “raring to go” in the polls.

Land reform urgent

At the manifesto launch in the capital, Harare, Mr Makoni said that he was not standing against the ruling Zanu-PF party, which formally expelled him this week, but “for the people of Zimbabwe”.

He said that land reform was more urgent than ever - but it was necessary for rural development rather than a means of redressing the wrongs of the colonial era.

He urged Zanu-PF members to join him by standing in the election as independent candidates.

He also called on Zimbabweans living abroad to come home to vote.

The former finance minister claimed that since he had entered the contest last week, attendance at voter registration centres around the country had increased 10-fold.

No coalition

President Mugabe will face three presidential challengers as both factions of the opposition are also fielding candidates.

Earlier at a press conference in South Africa, opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai confirmed his faction of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) would contest the election, despite what he called an uneven playing field.

He said that he would work with anyone who was prepared to close ranks against President Mugabe and the ruling party.

But the BBC’s Peter Biles in Johannesburg says he gave no hint that he and Mr Makoni were about to form an electoral coalition.

Mr Tsvangirai pointed out that Mr Makoni had been a member of Zanu-PF’s politburo while the Zimbabwean economy had been destroyed.

Previous polls have been characterised by violence and allegations of fraud.

Zimbabwe has the world’s highest inflation rate - 26,000% - and only an estimated one adult in five has a job.

Mr Mugabe’s critics blame the economic crisis on his policies, but he blames a Western plot to bring him down.

From news.bbc.co.uk

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30 January 2008
Posted to the web 30 January 2008

D. Webster Cassell

The Criminal Court “A” at the Temple of Justice yesterday literally transformed into a dramatic scene when Judge Charles K. Williams out of anger ordered cameramen in the court to take the photograph of the Trial Jury in the ongoing treason trial following claims that they had received bribe.

The entire court went wild after the judge instructed that the jurors photo be taken, when in fact the Trial Jury have not been disbanded neither guilty of any crime, but without further investigation the judge rendered a decision based on allegations from the defense counsel.

The judge’s decision exposed the jurors to public ridicule as people came from all over the court jeering at the trial jury indicting them of being rogues who sell justice to the executive branch of government.

The drama began after the trial jury handed down a unanimous guilty verdict indicating that both defendants, Charles Julu and Andrew Dorbor did conspire to stage a coup plot with the intention to unseat the Ellen led Government.

After listening to the jury’s verdict, the defense counsel under the leadership of Cllr. T. Dempster Brown made an application with a call to investigate claims that the jurors had received some compensation from the Montserrado County Attorney Samuel Jacobs to hand down a guilty verdict.

Cllr. Brown informed the court that they had received reliable information that the County Attorney was seen around the grounds of the Temple of Justice and had promised the jurors US$800.00 each if the verdict be in their favor.

“Upon my arrival yesterday morning, I headed for the Judges’ Chamber where I was informed that the County Attorney had tampered with the jurors,” Cllr. Brown added.

He further revealed that the County Attorney also promised the jurors US$150 Christmas bonus, something that he said came to the attention of the judge.

Cllr. Brown however called on the court to remand the jurors in prison until the allegation is investigated and proven beyond all reasonable doubts.

At that moment, Judge Williams himself revealed that sometime last year prior to the Christmas the county Attorney visited his office and informed him that the government is contemplating on finding US$150.00 bonus for the jurors.

” But I told him that it will be imprudent and will be consider as a bribe if any amount of money will be given to the jurors for so-called Christmas bonus,” Judge Williams stated.

“I immediately called the jurors in my chamber and warned them that no one should consider taking bribe or any money in an attempt to divert their decision,” he said.

The crowd then interrupted the judge’s deliberation as everybody went helter-skelter in the courtroom.

Judge Williams stood amazingly watching the crowd, as he could in no way contain it until officers of the Liberia National Police (LNP) intervened by putting an end to the ugly scenario.

The judge could not continue his deliberation and later announced the adjournment of the case to today at the same venue.

The trial jury described the judge’s decision as an insult and a physical disgrace to their performance and therefore exposed them to public disrepute.

The hubbub in the courtroom never quelled down even after Judge Williams had announced the court’s postponement of the case for today at 10 a.m.

The jurors alleged that the judge was angry at their verdict because according to them at a point in time, he invited them to receive a compensation so as to divert their verdict but they refused.

The judge could not address himself to the allegation because of the tension that mounted as the result of the judge’s decision that people should take the jurors’ picture, a clear indication that a judgment was rendered before investigation.

From all indication, the judge’s decision clearly shows that the jurors had already been convicted of the crime of bribery.

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Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Jendayi Frazer also denounced the continuing violence which has since forced thousands to flee their homes.

She urged President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga to focus on mediation efforts to end the crisis.

Formal negotiations between the two parties were due to begin on Wednesday.

But unconfirmed reports in the Kenyan media say the talks, brokered by former UN chief Kofi Annan, have now been delayed until Thursday because neither side can agree on an agenda.

Up to 900 people have died as violence has spread since the presidential poll, which the opposition claims was rigged.

At least nine people were killed in outbreaks of violence throughout the country on Tuesday, following the killing of Mugabe Ware, an MP from Mr Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement (ODM).

Meanwhile, Kenyan Foreign Minister Moses Wetangula has said Mr Kibaki will attend the African Union summit on Thursday, dismissing suggestions that there were more pressing issues for him to attend to at home.

On Monday, ODM Secretary General Anyang Nyong’o called on member states not to recognise what he called the illegitimate and illegal government of Mr Kibaki.

But Mr Wetangula said there was no injunction against the president and so he was obliged to discharge his function as a head of state.

‘Cycle of retaliation’

Speaking in Addis Ababa on the eve of the AU summit, Ms Frazer called on Kenyan political leaders to focus on ending their country’s political crisis, and urged them to publicly call for an end to the violence.

She said both sides had spent a lot of unhelpful time adopting hard-line negotiating positions in public and inciting political and ethnic unrest.

And she said those guilty of inciting or carrying out the violence should be held to account by the international community if necessary.

“We’re calling for an investigation into the inciting of violence as well as an investigation into who is actually killing people,” she said.

Ms Frazer described the forced removal of members of Mr Kibaki’s Kikuyu tribe, which she witnessed in the eastern Rift Valley region immediately following the election, as “clear ethnic cleansing”.

“The aim originally was not to kill, it was to cleanse, it was to push them out of the region,” she said.

“I met with the individuals who were victims of the violence - they all said that they were being pushed out of the area, that organised groups came to them and said: ‘You must leave your house by a certain time’.”

Ms Frazer went on to denounce the continuing ethnic clashes across the country, which have seen Kikuyus launch reprisal attacks on Luos and Kalenjins, who largely backed Mr Odinga in the election.

“The cycle of retaliation has gone too far and become more dangerous,” she added, warning that now “killing may be the object”.

The UN’s special adviser for the prevention of genocide, Francis Deng, has said he is sending one of his members of staff to observe the situation in Kenya.

“At the moment I would not use the word genocide,” he told the BBC’s Network Africa programme. “At the moment we are concerned about certain atrocities that could conceivably escalate if they’re not stopped.”

Mediation talks

Earlier, Kenyan Internal Security Minister George Saitoti said the security forces would now “act tough” when dealing with those behind the ethnic and political violence.

“We do not want to have the criminals running around and disrupting the activities of this country and I would like to tell those… who have been used to taking laws into their hands… that they are going to face very, very, very serious consequences,” he told NTV television.

Mr Saitoti’s comments came as three-person teams of representatives from Mr Kibaki’s Party of National Unity and Mr Odinga’s ODM were due to begin their deliberations in Nairobi.

The negotiations are to be based on a series of proposals drawn up by Kofi Annan and his team, which includes former Tanzanian President Benjamin Mkapa and Graca Machel, the wife of ex-South African President Nelson Mandela.

The former UN secretary general has given the two sides four weeks to resolve immediate political issues, and up to a year to sort out details.

Launching the formal mediation process on Tuesday, Mr Annan warned that the crisis was having a “profound and negative impact” and urged both sides to take the talks seriously or risk losing international aid.

The BBC’s Adam Mynott in Nairobi says parts of the country, particularly the Rift Valley and western Kenya, are cauldrons of hatred as a result of inter-ethnic fighting during the past month.

Source: news.bbc.co.uk

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